Hungerford Town suffered late heartbreak on Tuesday evening as a dramatic contest at Melksham Town was settled by a goal deep into stoppage time after a lengthy floodlight delay.

The Crusaders arrived in Wiltshire with three enforced changes from the side that opened the season with a 1-1 draw against Tiverton Town. Missing captain Berry-Hargreaves alongside attacking duo Brad Smith and Nana Owusu, Hungerford nevertheless produced a committed performance and looked capable of taking at least a point home before cruelly being denied at the death.

On a warm summer evening, it was the hosts who settled quickest and they threatened after ten minutes with a free-kick from a dangerous position. Ryan Clarke, however, remained untroubled as the effort drifted harmlessly wide.

Hungerford’s first sight of goal came from a set-piece of their own. Sam Tanner delivered into the area and Ben Stallard rose highest, but his header failed to trouble the target. As the half progressed, the visitors began to gain a foothold in the game. Nmams Nwachuku saw an effort blocked before Sheldon Wright appeared to have timed his run perfectly to race clear on goal, only for the assistant referee’s flag to halt the attack in what looked an extremely tight decision.

Melksham’s best opportunity of the first half arrived just after the half-hour mark when a free header inside the area sailed over the crossbar. It was a let-off for the Crusaders, who were then forced to defend resolutely as the hosts ended the half strongly. Owen Smith and Remarni Medford-Smith were particularly impressive, helping ensure the sides went into the interval level.

The second half belonged largely to Hungerford. Sam Tanner produced a moment of quality to create space on the edge of the area before seeing his effort deflected behind. Moments later George Franklin looked destined to head into an empty net, only for a remarkable piece of last-ditch defending to deny him.

Just after the hour mark came perhaps the defining chance of the evening. Fraser Bell delivered an inviting cross into the box and after Ackeem Stewart's initial effort was blocked, the rebound fell kindly for Medford-Smith. With the goal seemingly at his mercy, the defender unfortunately fired over the bar.

The match continued at an end-to-end pace. Clarke was called into action with an excellent fingertip save following a defensive error, whilst Nwachuku headed straight at the Melksham goalkeeper at the other end. With just over ten minutes remaining, another excellent delivery from Bell picked out Kyle Bailey, whose flicked effort drifted narrowly wide of the near post.

The game then took an unexpected turn as two floodlights failed, plunging half of the ground into darkness and causing a delay of nearly 15 minutes. When play resumed, Melksham appeared to regain their momentum quickest and began to push for a winner.
That decisive moment arrived in the 100th minute when Dan McBeam struck brilliantly from distance, curling an unstoppable effort beyond Clarke and into the top corner.

Hungerford threw everything forward in the remaining moments, with Jordan Rose introduced to provide an aerial threat, but the visitors were unable to create a clear opening and Melksham held on for all three points.

The final whistle brought frustration for the Crusaders, who will undoubtedly feel the lengthy interruption came at a difficult moment and altered the flow of a game that had been finely balanced throughout.

Despite the disappointment, there were plenty of positives to take from the performance, and attention now quickly turns to Saturday's home fixture where Hungerford will look to record their first victory of the new campaign in front of the Bulpit Lane faithful.

Team : Clarke, Bell, Medford-Smith, Franklin, Bailey, O Smith (Rose), Stallard (Kamden-Fotso), Squires (Clark), Wright, Tanner (Stewart), Nwachuku
Sub Unused : Chard
Attendance : 526
Star Man : Owen Smith